Nov 5th, 2013New Jersey governor Chris Christie, a Republican, is on his way to winning big in his bid for reelection Tuesday, and there's already talk he may be on his way to running for president in three years. Speaking to CNN's Jake Tapper, Christie argued he's not a moderate as he's sometimes portrayed.

"I'm a conservative," Christie told Tapper. "I've governed as a conservative in this state, and I think that's led to some people disagreeing with me in our state, because it's generally a left-of-center, blue state."

""Most folks, they’re willing to let you disagree with them a little bit, as long as they think you’re being straight with them," added Christie. "That’s the difference. And so I’ve governed as a conservative, and most people who look at my record objectively, will come to that conclusion."

Nov 5th, 2013New Jersey governor Chris Christie, a Republican, is on his way to winning big in his bid for reelection Tuesday, and there's already talk he may be on his way to running for president in three years. Speaking to CNN's Jake Tapper, Christie argued he's not a moderate as he's sometimes portrayed.

"I'm a conservative," Christie told Tapper. "I've governed as a conservative in this state, and I think that's led to some people disagreeing with me in our state, because it's generally a left-of-center, blue state."

""Most folks, they’re willing to let you disagree with them a little bit, as long as they think you’re being straight with them," added Christie. "That’s the difference. And so I’ve governed as a conservative, and most people who look at my record objectively, will come to that conclusion."

conservative does not equal teabaggeIf you recall, Romney referred to himself as severely conservativeIf Christie wants to tack right then more power to him

I'm pretty confident that rejecting being a moderate = complete sucking up to the tea party.

Dude IS a moderate. Everyone in his party is calling him a moderate. That's what he is. he's NOT a conservative. And for all practical purposes, tea party = conservatives now. If you are a conserrvative candidate, you are supported by the tea party. If you're a moderate, you are not.

Rand, Cruz, Perry, Santorum = they are all conservatives.

Mccain, romney, christie = they are moderates.

And, all those moderates DID try to sell themselves as moderates, abandoning all of their moderate positions that made some dem swing voters like that. They promise absolutes on the social tea party issues, and that scares off some moderate voters. But the base, pretty doggone smart, usually doesn't buy into it.

I mean, even on getbig, there weren't any members telling us "yeah brah, Romney is totally a conservative!" They agreed he was bullshitting about that... but that obama sucked worse.

I'm pretty confident that rejecting being a moderate = complete sucking up to the tea party.

Dude IS a moderate. Everyone in his party is calling him a moderate. That's what he is. he's NOT a conservative. And for all practical purposes, tea party = conservatives now. If you are a conserrvative candidate, you are supported by the tea party. If you're a moderate, you are not.

Rand, Cruz, Perry, Santorum = they are all conservatives.

Mccain, romney, christie = they are moderates.

And, all those moderates DID try to sell themselves as moderates, abandoning all of their moderate positions that made some dem swing voters like that. They promise absolutes on the social tea party issues, and that scares off some moderate voters. But the base, pretty doggone smart, usually doesn't buy into it.

I mean, even on getbig, there weren't any members telling us "yeah brah, Romney is totally a conservative!" They agreed he was bullshitting about that... but that obama sucked worse.

Let's settle this once and for all. Christie says he's not a moderate. He says he is a conservative.

Look at these examples... is he a conservative? Christie is on record as believing in global warming and, more specifically, that it is man made. He can NEVER escape this position with base voters. Ever.

New York Poll: Christie beats Cuomo but trails ClintonPosted byCNN Political Unit

(CNN) – Chris Christie would top Andrew Cuomo but lose to Hillary Clinton in hypothetical 2016 presidential matchups for New York State's 29 electoral votes, according to a new survey of Empire State voters.

And the Siena College Poll, released Monday, also indicates a drop in the approval rating for Cuomo as New York governor, but more than half of the state's registered voters say they would re-elect him next year.

In possible 2016 showdowns, 56% of those questioned say they'd support Clinton, the former secretary of state and 2008 Democratic presidential candidate who also served from 2001 to early 2009 as a senator from New York. Four in 10 say they'd back Christie, who was just re-elected two weeks ago to a second term as governor of neighboring New Jersey. But the GOP governor edges out Cuomo 47%-42%.

Clinton, if she decides to make another bid for the White House, would be the overwhelming favorite to win the Democratic nomination. Cuomo is also considered a possible 2016 Democratic contender for president. After passing on a run in 2012, Christie is seriously mulling a bid for the Republican nomination.

"Cuomo has a strong favorability rating. Christie's is a little better. And Clinton's favorability rating, 67-31 percent, is best of all," says Siena Pollster Steven Greenberg.

In a Christie-Clinton showdown, "Christie splits the suburban and upstate vote with Clinton, who dominates in New York City," adds Greenberg.

And in a Christie-Cuomo faceoff, "Cuomo's New York City lead is not enough to offset Christie's comparable upstate and suburban leads, not to mention Christie's 21-point lead among independent voters," says Greenberg.

New York state is reliably blue in presidential elections. The last Republican to capture the state in a presidential contest was President Ronald Reagan in his 1984 re-election landslide.

According to the poll, 44% of Empire State voters say Cuomo's doing an excellent or good job as governor, down from 52% in October. Fifty-six percent say Cuomo's doing a fair or poor job, up from 47% last month.

But Cuomo's 61% favorable rating is basically unchanged from October, and 51% say they would vote to re-elect him in 2014, also virtually unchanged from last month.

The Siena College Poll was conducted November 11-14, with 806 registered voters in New York state questioned by telephone. The survey's overall sampling error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

Let's settle this once and for all. Christie says he's not a moderate. He says he is a conservative.

Look at these examples... is he a conservative? Christie is on record as believing in global warming and, more specifically, that it is man made. He can NEVER escape this position with base voters. Ever.

Christie was notoriously soft on illegal immigrants, and called it a federal problem. That's right, he wants the govt to handle it. Sure lines up with obama, doesn't it?

NJ Govt has ballooned under Christie - He's not a small govt guy.

Christie has completely capitulated to a federal, Obama-supported educational policy... NCLB all the way, baby!

you don't have to be a moderate to believe in global warming/climate change

I believe he is still opposed to gay marriage (in spite of Repubs starting to break ranks on this)He did lie to the teachers when he ran the first time and then pull the rug out from under them (this should appeal to the far right who seem to hate education)He had massive tax cut for businesses

there are probably a few more things that I'm forgetting

I concede that Christie is NOT batshit crazy so the far right of the party is never going to like him but the country is not going to put a far right wingnut in as POTUS.

(CNN) - In the crucial swing state of Ohio, voters are practically split between Hillary Clinton and Chris Christie in a hypothetical 2016 presidential matchup, according to a new survey.

And in a potentially bad sign for 2014 Democrats, the new Quinnipiac University poll indicates the President's approval rating is at its lowest point in Quinnipiac polling history–nationally or in any state–at 34%.

Clinton v. Christie

The survey, which was released Wednesday, shows 42% of registered voters back the former Secretary of State while 41% support the recently re-elected Republican governor from New Jersey.

"Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are the 2016 leaders to Ohio voters, locked in a statistical tie," Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling institute, said in a release.

The Ohio poll is the latest survey to show Christie gaining ground against Clinton in a swing state. A Quinnipiac poll in Colorado last week indicated Christie ahead of Clinton by eight percentage points.

Three recent surveys in the reliably blue state of New York, however, show Christie trailing behind Clinton, who served eight years as Senator from the Empire State.

In the new Quinnipiac poll, Clinton topples Republican Gov. John Kasich of Ohio, 49%-38%. The governor, who's considered a possible 2016 White House contender, faces re-election next year, and a Quinnipiac survey released Tuesday showed him ahead of his likely Democratic opponent by only seven percentage points.

None of the mentioned potential candidates have announced bids for the White House, but many of them have made high-profile trips to swing states or have said they're considering a run.

"Ms. Clinton easily defeats a bevy of other potential GOP aspirants," Brown said. "Interestingly, when voters are asked whether she would make a good president, more say yes, than say they would vote for her."

Also of note, voters are divided, 44%-45%, on whether Washington experience or experience outside the nation's capital would help someone be a good President, Brown added.

Another potential candidate, Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, sparked a debate when he argued last week in an interview that the next presidential and vice presidential nominees should be a current or former governor–though he noted his friend from Wisconsin, Rep. Paul Ryan, would be an exception.

(CNN) - In the crucial swing state of Ohio, voters are practically split between Hillary Clinton and Chris Christie in a hypothetical 2016 presidential matchup, according to a new survey.

And in a potentially bad sign for 2014 Democrats, the new Quinnipiac University poll indicates the President's approval rating is at its lowest point in Quinnipiac polling history–nationally or in any state–at 34%.

Clinton v. Christie

The survey, which was released Wednesday, shows 42% of registered voters back the former Secretary of State while 41% support the recently re-elected Republican governor from New Jersey.

"Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are the 2016 leaders to Ohio voters, locked in a statistical tie," Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling institute, said in a release.

The Ohio poll is the latest survey to show Christie gaining ground against Clinton in a swing state. A Quinnipiac poll in Colorado last week indicated Christie ahead of Clinton by eight percentage points.

Three recent surveys in the reliably blue state of New York, however, show Christie trailing behind Clinton, who served eight years as Senator from the Empire State.

In the new Quinnipiac poll, Clinton topples Republican Gov. John Kasich of Ohio, 49%-38%. The governor, who's considered a possible 2016 White House contender, faces re-election next year, and a Quinnipiac survey released Tuesday showed him ahead of his likely Democratic opponent by only seven percentage points.

None of the mentioned potential candidates have announced bids for the White House, but many of them have made high-profile trips to swing states or have said they're considering a run.

"Ms. Clinton easily defeats a bevy of other potential GOP aspirants," Brown said. "Interestingly, when voters are asked whether she would make a good president, more say yes, than say they would vote for her."

Also of note, voters are divided, 44%-45%, on whether Washington experience or experience outside the nation's capital would help someone be a good President, Brown added.

Another potential candidate, Republican Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin, sparked a debate when he argued last week in an interview that the next presidential and vice presidential nominees should be a current or former governor–though he noted his friend from Wisconsin, Rep. Paul Ryan, would be an exception.

“This entire Obamacare program is a failure. It’s a failure and people are seeing it starkly and clearly right now and the president is scrambling. He should’ve just told people the truth from the beginning, but you know what if he had, they wouldn’t have passed it. Not even Democrats would’ve passed this,” Christie said.

Christie, who recently began his role as chairman of the Republican Governors Association, also took time to address the ever-present questions on 2016.

“I’ll make that decision when I think I need to, and not a minute before,” Christie said.

A new national poll indicates New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie would be an early frontrunner if he decides to jump into the race for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.

The CNN/ORC International survey, released Friday, indicates Christie, who won re-election in a landslide victory, leads the pack of potential contenders for the GOP nomination.

The poll also found that Democrats would favor Vice President Joe Biden, if Hillary Clinton decides against making another bid for the White House, .

Twenty-four percent of Republicans and independents questioned in the survey polled said they'd support Christie, up seven percentage points from a CNN poll in eptember. Back then, Christie and Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the House Budget chairman and the 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee, were virtually tied, with Christie at 17 percent and Ryan at 16 percent.

But Ryan has dropped to 11 percent, behind Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, at 13 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas garnered 10 percent in the survey, followed by Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida at 9 percent, Texas Gov. Rick Perry at 7 percent, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, each at 6 percent.

"Among Republicans making more than $50,000, Christie wins 32 percent support, 20 points higher than Cruz, Ryan, or Marco Rubio, all of whom get 12% among higher-income GOPers, and 23 points higher than Paul," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "But among Republicans who make less than $50,000 a year, Christie's support drops 19 points, only good enough for second place behind Paul."

The CNN poll indicates that Clinton would be the overwhelming frontrunner in the race for the Democratic nomination, with 63 percent of Democrats and independents who lean towards the Democratic Party saying she would be their choice. Biden was a distant second at 12 percent, followed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts (7 percent), New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo (5 percent), and two-term Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (2 percent).

But if Clinton forgoes another run for the White House, the poll found 43 percent of Democrats would support the Vice President.

The poll was conducted November 18-20 for CNN by ORC International, with 843 adult Americans, including 418 Republicans and independents who lean towards the GOP, and 374 Democrats and independents who lean Democratic, questioned by telephone. The survey's overall sampling error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, with a sampling error of plus or minus five percentage points for questions just of Democrats or Republicans.

A new national poll indicates New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie would be an early frontrunner if he decides to jump into the race for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination.

The CNN/ORC International survey, released Friday, indicates Christie, who won re-election in a landslide victory, leads the pack of potential contenders for the GOP nomination.

The poll also found that Democrats would favor Vice President Joe Biden, if Hillary Clinton decides against making another bid for the White House, .

Twenty-four percent of Republicans and independents questioned in the survey polled said they'd support Christie, up seven percentage points from a CNN poll in eptember. Back then, Christie and Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, the House Budget chairman and the 2012 Republican vice presidential nominee, were virtually tied, with Christie at 17 percent and Ryan at 16 percent.

But Ryan has dropped to 11 percent, behind Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, at 13 percent. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas garnered 10 percent in the survey, followed by Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida at 9 percent, Texas Gov. Rick Perry at 7 percent, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, each at 6 percent.

"Among Republicans making more than $50,000, Christie wins 32 percent support, 20 points higher than Cruz, Ryan, or Marco Rubio, all of whom get 12% among higher-income GOPers, and 23 points higher than Paul," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "But among Republicans who make less than $50,000 a year, Christie's support drops 19 points, only good enough for second place behind Paul."

The CNN poll indicates that Clinton would be the overwhelming frontrunner in the race for the Democratic nomination, with 63 percent of Democrats and independents who lean towards the Democratic Party saying she would be their choice. Biden was a distant second at 12 percent, followed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts (7 percent), New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo (5 percent), and two-term Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley (2 percent).

But if Clinton forgoes another run for the White House, the poll found 43 percent of Democrats would support the Vice President.

The poll was conducted November 18-20 for CNN by ORC International, with 843 adult Americans, including 418 Republicans and independents who lean towards the GOP, and 374 Democrats and independents who lean Democratic, questioned by telephone. The survey's overall sampling error is plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, with a sampling error of plus or minus five percentage points for questions just of Democrats or Republicans.

THERE is the rub. You see, independents and repubs DO NOT choose the candidate in many states. It's only the registered republicans. I can bet in just about EVERY poll done with STRICTLY REGISTERED REPUBS, christie will lose to a cruz or rand.

And that’s why Chris Christie is such a fascinating case study in massaging the media.

Mounting a White House campaign can be overwhelming, and pols who are accustomed only to the modest scrutiny visited on governors and senators are often blinded by the searing spotlight.

Bill Clinton got gentle treatment from the Little Rock press corps, but in 1992 was hit by the national media over Whitewater, Gennifer Flowers and avoiding the draft. But he didn’t hide from the press—I remember being on a late-night campaign flight where he talked and talked to a group of reporters, some of whom just wanted to catch some shut-eye but were afraid of missing something.

John McCain spent eight or nine hours a day fielding questions from journalists on his bus in 2000, to the point where we sometimes ran out of material and wound up talking about movies and sports.

That same year, George W. Bush, in his compassionate conservative phase, enjoyed chatting with his media regulars and bestowed nicknames on many of them.

Mitt Romney, by contrast, avoided his press corps, seemed uncomfortable around reporters, and ran a campaign that often ignored journalistic questions. That was a missed opportunity for a challenger.

Look for Christie, assuming he runs in 2016, to passionately engage with the media (as you might have guessed when he did four Sunday shows after winning reelection). That engagement will sometimes be contentious, but chances are it will never be dull.

The best way to get a sense of how Christie’s approach to the media is to examine how he deals with New Jersey reporters. Matt Katz, who now covers the governor for WNYC and New Jersey Public Radio, lifts the curtain for Politico:

“The local reporters get our own unique treatment—revealing, off-the-record, end-of-summer beers at Jersey Shore bars and profanity-infused Christmas party conversations at the governor’s mansion. But we also get our own unique abuse: We know what it’s like to be put in the ‘penalty box,’ as Christie calls it, briefly shut out from the inner circle for writing something Team Christie hates. And we’ve all been dressed down in State House hallways by Christie’s chief spokesman, Michael Drewniak, an expert at channeling his boss’s fury.

“Christie likes to tell crowds at press conferences that I must have pissed someone off at the Philadelphia Inquirer to get the Christie beat, but he’s lying. He knows he fulfilled his promise from that first day we met: ‘We’re going to do our best to keep you entertained.’”

In diary form, Katz recalls what Christie said at the 2011 presser when he announced he wouldn’t be running for president:

“The only regret I have is that I’ve given such great TV exposure to some of the local reporters. I mean, who’s gonna have Katz on TV now that I’m out of this race? Nobody is gonna have Katz on TV. He won’t be able to get on News 12 for God’s sake.”

A savvy pol plays off his press corps, and Christie is no exception:

“Christie uses reporters the same way comedians use those in the front rows at stand-up shows. The back-and-forth amuses him, amuses his staff, amuses us (sometimes). We also act as his foil, tossing the alley-oops for the sound bites that land on the gubernatorial YouTube channel. The clips are emailed to every political reporter in America and likely a few county Republican chairs in Iowa…

“My biggest competition is not other reporters; it is the man himself. He is his own news outlet.”

There is a downside to this approach, of course. A man who is his own news outlet risks overexposure. The more he’s sparring with reporters, the greater the chance that he will say something dumb, creating a YouTube moment that he wouldn’t want on his channel. And there’s a chance his argumentative style may not wear well.

But this one is different. Rather than chastising the New Jersey governor, who has undergone lap-band surgery, Politico says he has a pound-for-pound advantage:

“A fat nominee could be exactly what a Republican Party needs to shed its image as out of touch with ordinary Americans.

“Think about it—Romney lost in 2012 in large part because he was perceived as lacking empathy. Exit polls showed that Barack Obama beat Romney by 10 percentage points on the crucial question of which candidate ‘is more in touch with people like you.’…

“Christie’s size would allow him to do something similar with overweight voters.

And let’s face it: America definitely has a plus-size electorate. Almost 70 percent of us are overweight, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, including more than a third who, like Christie, are obese.”I don’t think the notion that waistline-challenged voters can relate to Christie is crazy. But this feels like a lightweight piece designed to get attention. Which we just provided.

“A fat nominee could be exactly what a Republican Party needs to shed its image as out of touch with ordinary Americans.

“Think about it—Romney lost in 2012 in large part because he was perceived as lacking empathy. Exit polls showed that Barack Obama beat Romney by 10 percentage points on the crucial question of which candidate ‘is more in touch with people like you.’…

LOL!

talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel. It's like republicans want the biggest possible challenge in 2016. It's not bad enough that Christie has so many lib positions, donated to planned parenthood, etc...

The fact he's morbidly obese doesn't help him. He looks terrible now, and it's in the comfort of being governor. Imagine him on the campaign trail, 16 or 18 straight months of living in hotels, spending 14 hours a day shaking hands and giving stump speeches... yeah, it's gonna be ugly lol.

Repubs, Perry looks the part. Rand or Cruz act the part. Why settle for a RINO lib that doesn't have the discipline to put down the fork and spend 90 minutes a day on the treadmill?

(CNN) - If you think that Garden Staters are concerned that their governor, Chris Christie, will run for president in 2016, think again.

A new poll indicates that most New Jersey residents expect Christie to launch a bid for the White House, and few are bothered by that, even if Christie steps down as governor. And the Monmouth University/Asbury Park Press Poll, released Wednesday, also suggests that the Republican governor could turn New Jersey red in a presidential election for the first time in more than a quarter century.

Sixty-nine percent of those questioned in the poll say that they believe Christie is already planning to run for president in 2016. Amid mounting speculation that he'll launch a campaign for the GOP nomination, the tough-talking governor, who won a landslide re-election last month over a little known Democratic challenger, has not committed to serving out his second term in Trenton.

According to the poll, two-thirds say they wouldn't be particularly bothered if Christie ran for president, even though that would pull him out of New Jersey quite often. And 69% say they wouldn't be upset if Christie stepped down as governor in order to run for the White House.

The poll indicated little partisan divide between Democrats, Republicans and independents on any of these questions.

"New Jersey is fairly united on this one: Run, Christie, run!" said Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute.

Then Vice President George H.W. Bush, who carried New Jersey in his 1988 election as president, was the last Republican to win the state in a presidential contest. But the poll suggests Christie could grab New Jersey's 14 electoral votes.

According to the poll, Christie holds a 46%-43% margin over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who would be the overwhelming frontrunner for the Democratic nomination if she runs again for the White House, in a hypothetical 2016 general election matchup.

A new survey of Iowa voters says Hillary Clinton would trump Republican Sens. Ted Cruz and Rand Paul — but not New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie — in a potential 2016 presidential matchup, a sign that Mr. Christie carries some sway in a general election contest despite a separate poll that says he trails the likes of a Rep. Paul Ryan and Texas Gov. Rick Perry among Iowa Republicans.

Mr. Christie leads Mrs. Clinton, the former secretary of state, by 45 percent to 40 percent in the early look at the 2016 contest by Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. The institute says women overwhelmingly back Mrs. Clinton, while men favor Mr. Christie by an 11-percent margin.

“New Jersey Gov. Christopher Christie pulls ahead of Secretary Hillary Clinton among Iowa voters. The change from the last time Quinnipiac University polled Iowa, July 22 when they were tied 41-41 percent, reflects a general improvement for Republicans, almost certainly related to the controversy over ‘Obamacare,’” said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

Iowa is a crucial political bellwether, since its voters formally kick off each presidential-primary season with their party caucuses.

State voters also told Quinnipiac they think Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, a Republican, should be re-elected.

“Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad enters his re-election year in better shape than when we looked five months ago. He defeats his three potential Democratic opponents by 16 points or more and has the kind of job approval that usually goes along with comfortable re-elections,” Mr. Brown said.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is expected to sign legislation Friday that would make his state the 18th to allow undocumented immigrants to qualify for in-state tuition.

But according to The New York Times, a provision was removed from the Dream Act approved by the legislature Thursday that would have also made financial aid available.

The Republican governor, the Times reported, had insisted that the aid be denied, fearing that making it available would turn New Jersey into "a magnet state" for undocumented out-of-state students.

Only California, New Mexico and Texas allow illegal immigrants to receive financial aid, the Times noted.

Under the terms of the bill, only illegal immigrants who have graduated from a New Jersey high school after at least three years of attendance will be able to qualify for in-state tuition.

In his re-election campaign, Christie had campaigned heavily on the in-state tuition issue, easily coasting to a landslide victory with a strong 51 percent showing of support from Hispanics, according to USA Today.

Christie also supports a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, a prickly issue within the GOP. A likely presidential candidate in 2016, Christie has built a reputation as an outspoken but compromising Republican who successfully governs as a red politician in a blue state.

At a press conference Thursday, Christie said he was owed apologies from critics who accused him during the campaign of using the tuition issue as a political ploy to attract Hispanic votes.

“This is what compromise looks like and I’ll be waiting for all the apology letters that come in from all the people, some in this room, who said I was not serious about tuition equality, and somehow this was an election prank,” Christie told reporters, according to ABC News.

“This will once again be an example of New Jersey showing how you can come to a bipartisan agreement, not that we agree on everything, but that we find a way to bring people together and come to a position and benefit all the people of this state and shame on all the people, shame on all of you who accused me and others of playing politics with this issue, you were wrong.”

The legislation will take effect immediately, in time for the spring semester.

The good news for Christie follows by two days his showing in a Public Policy Polling survey that had him leading former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in a hypothetical presidential matchup, beating her by 3 points, 45 percent to 42 percent.

But the Daily Caller pointed out the standings may mean little long before any primary election will actually be held, noting former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani led national GOP primary polls in 2007, but failed to win a single primary a year later.